2017Distinguished Alumnus AwardMeet Brian in this video!Brian’s award-winning films reduce stigma and reveal the humanity of people living on themargins. His recent film, Mothering Inside, helped inspire the Oregon Legislature to fund the Family Preservation Project and to make Oregon the first state in the U.S. to pass a bill of rights for children of incarcerated parents. Last year, he was awarded the Media Arts Fellowship by Portland’s Regional Arts & Culture Council.

2017Outstanding Young Alumnus AwardMeet David in this video!After graduating from Princeton Theological Seminary, David was ordained in 2014 to work at Broad Street Ministry, a progressive faith community, in Philadelphia. He started a spirituality group for LGBTQ+ youth, along with creating an LGBTQ+ Fellowship. He is currently pastor of Maryland Presbyterian Church in Towson, Maryland.

Beloved by hundreds of students during his tenure as professor of history, Stephen was named Oregon Professor of the Year in 1994. More than just the resident expert on all things Pacific Northwest, he has been the heart and soul behind preserving the college’s history and telling our story. He has authored several books, chaired committees, and made countless presentations on the college’s behalf.

2017Pioneer Alumni Leadership AwardMeet Carol in this video! Since her graduation, Carol has represented Lewis & Clark in a variety of capacities. Among other roles, she has served as a member and president of the Board of Alumni, and member and chair of the Hall of Fame committee; has helped organize special reunions; and has spoken at opening convocation, commencement, alumni honors banquets, and Black and Orange parties.

On January 1, Cassie Franklin BA ’93 was sworn in as mayor of Everett, Washington, a city of 108,000 residents about 25 minutes north of Seattle. Franklin is the first female mayor to be elected in the city’s 124-year history.

Trustee Paula Hayes BA ’92 has been named a recipient of a Portland Business Journal Small Business Innovation Award for her cosmetics company Hue Noir, which develops makeup designed for women of color.

Danial Afzal BA ’12, who studied theories behind the way media influences our lives, is now shaping lives himself with his award-winning short film, The Survivor. The documentary tells the story of a young student who escapes the 2014 attack on the Army Public School in Pakistan and the grief that follows.

The new 2018 U.S News & World Report Best Colleges rankings identify Lewis & Clark’s Overseas and Off-Campus Programs as among the best in the nation. The peer rankings also feature Lewis & Clark on the “Best Undergraduate Teaching” list, a select group of 30 liberal arts colleges where the faculty has an unusually strong commitment to undergraduate teaching.

International affairs alumna Lyla Bashan has turned an expansive career in diplomacy into a handbook for those who want to change the world for the better. Now her lessons in foreign service from Tajikistan to Armenia are in the pocket of students everywhere with the release of her first book Global: An Extraordinary Guide for Ordinary Heroes.

Sierra magazine has named Lewis & Clark one of its top 5 “Cool Schools” for 2017, an annual ranking that assesses 200 of North America’s most sustainability-minded colleges and universities. Lewis & Clark is the only liberal arts college on the West Coast to make the top 10.

For Adam Merino BA ’05, the path to the top of Forbes Magazine’s list of 500 next-generation wealth managers started with studying economics at Lewis & Clark. Merino continues to employ and sharpen his critical-thinking skills now as a managing director at Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management.

Lewis & Clark has selected Wim Wiewel (pronounced Vim VEE-vel) to lead the institution forward as its next president. Wiewel, who has just completed a nine-year run as president of Portland State University, will start in his new role on October 1.

Environmental studies majors and varsity track and cross country runners, Frances Swanson ’17 and teammate Kori Groenveld ’18 linked their passions for environmental sustainability and social justice. Their partnership yielded a project to help combat gentrification and the unequal distribution of renewable energy infrastructure in downtown Portland.

For the fifth year in a row, Lewis & Clark has been named one of the top producers of Fulbright Award winners in the country, according to the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. With ten Fulbright scholars in 2016–17, Lewis & Clark is in the top ten liberal arts college producers of Fulbrights in the nation, and the only top producer in Oregon.

In the few short years since graduating with a degree in international affairs, Matthew Rugamba ’13 has become a rising young star in African fashion. Rugamba’s Kigali-based fashion line House of Tayo was recently featured in the CNN series African Voices, with Rugamba recognized for his artistic innovation and nod to authentic African design.

Theatre alum Usman Ally ’04 has accumulated an impressive list of stage and screen roles since graduating from Lewis & Clark. The award-winning actor adds to that series of roles in his newest turn as the villainous Hook-Handed Man in Netflix’s new, widely-acclaimed original production, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events.

Niels Marquardt has been the CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce in Australia since 2013. This position builds on a U.S. State Department career spanning administrations from Jimmy Carter to Barack Obama and service as ambassador to four African nations and as consul general in Sydney.

Haben Girma has earned recognition as a White House Champion of Change, in Forbes’ “30 Under 30” celebration, and as a subject in the BBC World Service series “Women of Africa.” The first deaf-blind person to graduate from Harvard Law School, she advocates for equal access to information for people with disabilities.

One of just 37 selected from among 1,800 applicants, poet Corey Van Landingham BA ’08 is a recipient of a 2017 National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship. One of her poems was printed in the Jan. 16 issue of The New Yorker.

Many members of the Lewis & Clark community have shared concerns regarding the new White House administration’s proposals as they relate to Muslims and also to possible changes in immigration laws and policies. Though we do not yet know what changes in policy and enforcement will occur, Lewis & Clark has always and will always support members of our community to the fullest extent possible.

During his influential 38-year career at the college, Michael Ford directed student activities, campus programs, alumni relations, annual giving, and residence life. He served as dean of students and as associate vice president for campus life, working with all three Lewis & Clark schools.

Portland Center Stage just concluded its run of an original production, The Oregon Trail, a comedic mashup of pop culture and American history. The staging shone a spotlight not just on the popular 80s computer game and the historic route west, but also on one of Lewis & Clark’s own, Alex Leigh Ramirez BA ’10.

Kristina Dill BA ’16 is the latest Lewis & Clark graduate to earn a spot as a finalist for the internationally regarded Rhodes Scholarship. If she wins, she will be one of 32 students honored nationwide and Lewis & Clark’s third alumni to attain this prestigious award, which funds pursuit of a graduate degree at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.

The recipe for an award-winning documentary about Portland’s vibrant food truck scene? Take one experienced documentary film-making professor. Add two dozen students. Mix in 400 food trucks and carts. Stir consistently for 3 years. Serve at international film festival. Read the full story in the new issue of the Chronicle.

History major, Sam Bussan ’18 recently discovered a rare 1599 English Bible in the basement of Watzek. This Oregonian story includes some great pictures and briefly interviews him and our new Head of Special Collections, Hannah Crummé.

Campaign finance reform is not a topic for the faint of heart. But recent graduates Maya Gold BA ’14 and Walker Davis BA ’15 are intrepid researchers, and the result of their labors is an academic paper, just published in Election Law Journal, that explores the often-convoluted world of Oregon’s campaign finance laws.

Sasha Bishop BA ’15 has been awarded first place in a highly competitive poster presentation session held by the International Congress of Arachnology, which draws nearly 400 students from around the world to compete and share original research. Bishop heads to the University of Michigan this fall to pursue her PhD in biodiversity.

With a renowned commitment to international education, and a focus on nurturing curiosity, social consciousness, and critical thinking, Lewis & Clark is an ideal training ground for a career as a foreign correspondent. From the latest issue of The Chronicle, meet a few alumni making the journey.

A team of five Lewis & Clark students have qualified for the final rounds of the 2016 Cleantech Challenge. The competition, held at Portland State University, invites student entrepreneurs to showcase their inventions and compete for a $10,000 grand prize.

Karissa Tom B.A. ’16 is the first Lewis & Clark alumnus to secure a John Lewis Fellowship through the international nonprofit organization Humanity in Action. She joins her colleagues from Europe and the United States in Atlanta this summer.

Four biology alumni have been awarded prestigious National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships. The awards are investments in the education of outstanding students who have the potential to contribute significantly to research, teaching, and innovations in science and engineering.

Bob Fitch B.S. ’61, who died last Saturday, was recognized for his achievements in photojournalism in the May 3 issue of the New York Times. The powerful Martin Luther King monument on the National Mall is based on Fitch’s portrait of King.

Five seniors and six recent alumni will spend the next year overseas after receiving prestigious awards from the Fulbright Program. Lewis & Clark is one of the top producers of Fulbright award winners in the country.

Lewis & Clark has again been named one of the top producers of Fulbright Award winners in the country. Additionally, the Peace Corps recently named Lewis & Clark one of the top 25 small undergraduate colleges.

2015Outstanding Young Alumna AwardMeet Samantha Robison in this video!Samantha is the Founder and Executive Director of Awareness and Prevention through Art (aptART), an organization of artists and activists dedicated to sharing artistic experiences with conflict affected and marginalized youth throughout the world.

Isabel Ball B.A. ’15 has been named a Luce Scholar for 2016–17. The highly prestigious award from the Henry Luce Foundation provides funding for young leaders to spend a year in Asia conducting research that will lead to their professional advancement.

2015Distinguished Alumnus AwardMeet Bob Fitch in this video!Bob Fitch has been documenting peace and justice work for close to a half century. From his first volunteer assignment for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) in Alabama in 1965, through documenting Luis Alejo’s 2010-11 campaign for a seat in the California State Assembly, Fitch’s photographs are about the people who make up the movements for change.

Homecoming and Family Weekend is right around the corner and we’d love to have you there Friday, October 20 through Sunday, October 22. We are always excited to have faculty and staff join in on the festivities!

2015Pioneer Alumni Leadership AwardMeet Toshinobu Toyama in this video!For sixteen years, Toshinobu served as a dedicated volunteer with the L&C Japan Alumni Chapter. He organized events to build community with Japanese alumni, provided hospitality for L&C presidents, deans, college faculty and staff, and helped numerous students and alumni connect with other alumni with a focus on career development.